It’s come as a bit of a shock to realize that it’s been a month since I last posted anything. I kept putting it off in favor of doing something else writing related and, well, here we are. Sorry!
Writing wise, it seems like everything’s been happening everywhere all at once. (Yes, I went to see the movie. No, I couldn’t stop myself from mucking around with the title.) In no particular order, the following has floated in and out of my literary life.
First, Nigeria. Although I am Scottish by birth and American by choice, I am (in part) Nigerian by descent. So I was delighted beyond the telling to learn that A Quiet Teacher has been picked up by Masobe Books, a Nigerian publisher. “Masobe,” by the way, means “let us read” in Isoko, which is spoken in the Delta region of Nigeria. I can’t think of a better name for a publisher! It will be on sale soon and I think the cover treatment is incredible. Conceptually similar to the original but with a decidedly Nigerian vibe. My only regret is that my old man is not around to see it. It would have tickled him pink. Or maybe green, white, and green. 🇳🇬
Second, and sticking with A Quiet Teacher, Severn House, the publisher, have approached me about writing a sequel. Needless to say, I am super excited about the opportunity. First, it means I now have a shot at publishing a third book, so I can keep this writer lark going a bit longer. Second, I would really like to see where my main character’s journey takes him.
The catch, though, if that’s the right word, is that SH wanted a synopsis. I’ve never written a synopsis prior to writing the actual book, so that was an adventure in and of itself. It’s a lot more work! Instead of writing a high-level summary of a story I’d already written, I had to plan the book first and write a summary of that instead. No basic outline of the story, no synopsis. Which, I guess, is the point. SH know fine well that, having done all that prep work up front, I’m going to write the thing! So, I’m pushing on and finalizing the outline in the hope that SH find the synopsis acceptable. Which brings us to my usual problem: the title. This time, I don’t even have an idea for one. My agent, the estimable Brady, has suggested 2 Quiet 2 Teacher. He is not, perhaps, being entirely serious.
Third, and last, and by no means least, I have finished the manuscript of E________! “Finished,” as I have noted before, is kind of relative. What I mean this time is this: having written a first draft followed by two go-overs, the third iteration of E_________ was in good enough shape to send to the estimable Brady and his assistant, James, for comment. Of course, the moment I pressed “send,” I started torturing myself. Maybe I’d sent it off too soon. Maybe, even now, Brady and James were reading a steaming pile of garbage. Ugh! But last Friday they called to say they’d read the manuscript and that it was not at all bad. According to Brady, I have written a pacy SF thriller in the same vein as Blake Crouch’s Dark Matter or Recursion, which, if even half true, is high praise indeed!
Even better from my perspective, neither Brady nor James had any big edits, just some really good suggestions for polishing it up: something I can get done in a week or two. Which leaves me in a truly unusual position. For the first time in maybe a year, I have time on my hands. 2 Quiet 2 Teacher here we come!